The Radcliffe Red List

of Endangered Crafts

Heritage Crafts Association

Research funded by The Radcliffe Trust

The Heritage Crafts Association© 2017 – all rights reserved

Design: Hernewood Studio: Patricia Lovett MBE

The Heritage Crafts Association is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation, registered with the Charity Commission for England and Wales, number 1159208.Registered address: Righthand Police House, Edale, Hope Valley, Derbyshire S33 7ZA.Web: www.heritagecrafts.org.ukEmail: info@heritagecrafts.org.ukFacebook: heritagecraftsTwitter: @heritage_craftsInstagram: @heritagecrafts

PresidentHRH The Prince of Wales

PatronsLord Cormack DL, FSA

Sir Christopher FraylingKaffe FassettEmma Bridgewater CBE

Mark HendersonDr Alex LanglandsPaul Martin

The Heritage Crafts Association is indebted to The Radcliffe Trust for their support for The Radcliffe Red List of Endangered Crafts project and for the launch at the House of Lords on May 3rd 2017.

Text by Greta Bertram, Daniel Carpenter, Ian Keys, Patricia Lovett MBE, and Robin Wood MBE.

Photographs © 2017 named photographers.

This publication was made possible due to a generous donation by Richard Hobbs, HCA Trustee.

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Unlike contemporary crafts, which are supp-orted by the government though Arts CouncilEngland, heritage crafts receive no public fund-ing. Today, the Heritage Crafts Association isstill run by a dedicated team of volunteerTrustees, assisted by a part-time Administratorkindly funded by the Headley Trust.

To achieve our aims, the HCA needs the supportof everyone concerned about the future of craft –craftspeople, craft guilds and associations,craft business, Livery Companies, galleries,and those passionate about preserving craft,heritage and tradition for future generations.

Please join the HCA, support us, andenable us to continue this very impor-tant work. Without your support, manyof the crafts highlighted in this publica-tion could be extinct within the nextfive years.

About the HCA

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From blacksmithing to basketry, from weavingto wood-turning, we have an incredible range

of craft skills in the UK and some of the bestcraftspeople in the world.

Founded eight years ago by a small group ofmakers and those interested in craft, the HeritageCrafts Association (HCA) is the only nationalorganisation that safeguards and promotes trad-itional craft skills in the UK. We have brought thesector together for the first time and created afocus for heritage crafts.

Our aim is to support and promote heritage craftsas a fundamental part of our living heritage. Wedo this by:

• Surveying – researching the status of heritagecrafts, identifying those crafts in decline or inimminent danger of being lost, and addressingthe issues to ensure their survival.

• Advocating – communicating the vital impor-tance of heritage crafts to government, keyagencies and organisations.

• Celebrating – raising awareness and raisingthe status of heritage craft skills with the widerpublic through a programme of public relations,communications and showcase events.

• Safeguarding – working in partnership with keyagencies in the education and learning sectorsto identify and support new and innovative waysto ensure that the highest standard of heritageskills are passed from one generation to the nextand where necessary recorded for posterity.

• Supporting – supporting heritage crafts througha range of means, including advice, networking,training and access to public and private funding.

www.heritagecrafts.org.uk

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The President of the Heritage Crafts Association: HRH The Prince of Wales

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Traditional craft knowledge, skills and practicesare as equally an important part of our heritage

in the UK as the tangible artefacts, monuments andbuildings that are preserved in our museums andhistoric environments. To be properly safeguardedfor the future, heritage crafts must be lived – theymust be passed on from master to student, evolvingthrough the generations to remain viable and vibrantin each new age.

As the organisation set up by craftspeople concernedabout the precariousness of traditional crafts, it isthe HCA’s responsibility to go beyond the storiesand anecdotal accounts to find a more systematicway to assess exactly what is at greatest risk ofbeing lost.

In 2015, with generous funding from The RadcliffeTrust, the HCA set about a new research project toproduce The Radcliffe Red List of Endangered Crafts,the aim of which was to assess the current viabilityof traditional heritage crafts in the UK and identifythose crafts which are most at risk of disappearing.

For the purposes of this research, a heritage craft isdefined as a practice which employs manual dexterityand skill and an understanding of traditional mat-erials, design and techniques, and which has beenpractised for two or more successive generations.This research focuses on craft practices which aretaking place in the UK at the present time, includingthose crafts which have originated elsewhere, and onthose aspects of each craft with a high reliance onhand-work and which involve high levels of hand skill.

Between May 2016 and January 2017, approximately700 organisations and individuals were contacteddirectly by email and telephone and invited to con-tribute to the research. Participants were asked toprovide background information about each craft,such as its history, techniques and local forms, aswell as current information relating to the number ofskilled craftspeople and trainees, how endangered

The Radcliffe Red List

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they believed the craft to be as a whole, any particu-larly endangered skills within the craft, and any issuesaffecting the viability of the craft.

Each craft was then classified into one of four cate-gories of endangerment using a combination ofboth objective criteria (such as numbers of traineesand skilled craftspeople) and subjective criteria(consensus on how endangered practitioners believetheir craft to be, combined with other factors suchas the average age of practitioners, training oppor-tunities available, and issues affecting the futureviability of the craft).

Of the 169 crafts featured in the research, seventeenhave been classified as ‘critically endangered’ (atserious risk of no longer being practised). These in-clude crafts with a shrinking base of craftspeople,limited training opportunities, low financial viability,or no mechanism to pass on the skills and knowledge.Four have been classified as ‘extinct’ (no longerpractised) in the past generation.

Issues affecting the viability of heritage crafts havebeen identified. Some of these were already knownto the HCA, but the research has significantly ex-panded our knowledge of them, the reasons behindthem, and the experiences of individual craftspeople.We now have a much better understanding of theshape of the heritage crafts sector, which crafts aremost endangered, and the issues affecting their fut-ure viability.

It is our hope that this research will act as a callto action to those who have it within their powerto resolve or alleviate these issues, and that thisproject will mark the start of long-term monitor-ing of heritage craft viability and a shared will toavoid the cultural loss that is borne each time acraft dies.

Greta Bertram, Project Manager, May 2017Meta

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of Endangered Crafts

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The research has identified a range of issues whichaffect the future viability of crafts across the

spectrum, and not just those that have been identi-fied as critically endangered.

Training: A lack of formal and informal trainingopportunities; the quality of available training; alack of standards, qualifications and accreditationin training; the prohibitive cost of training for thetrainer and other barriers for those looking to takeon trainees.

Recruitment: Difficulties in the recruitment oftrainees and new entrants to the crafts.

Ageing skilled practitioners: Few or no youngerpeople entering the crafts – in some crafts theyoungest known craftsperson may be in their 50sor 60s.

Loss of high-level craft skills: This may be due toa changing focus within the way the craft is practised,teaching methods, or the introduction of new tech-nologies within the wider craft.

Market: Reduced demand for the product; lack ofawareness from potential customers about thecraft; (un)willingness of customers to pay higherprices for hand-made, British products; competitionfrom overseas; difficulties of earning a living fromthe craft alone.

Supply of raw materials, allied materials andtools: The availability and (rising) cost of raw mate-rials, allied materials and tools. Certain crafts relyon very specific materials and tools, so if anythinghappens to that supply then the future of the craftmay be severely affected.

Small business challenges: Perceived increasingbureaucratic burden for small businesses; businessrates and the cost of affordable workshops; theneed for business skills as well as craft skills; the

challenges of passing on a craft business.

Miscellaneous: Restrictive legislation; changingmethods of working; funding cuts to allied indus-tries; lack of data about individual crafts.

For full definitions and further informationabout each craft, please visit: http://redlist.heritagecrafts.org.uk

Issues affecting the viability of heritage craftsJo

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Following the research and the compilation of TheRadcliffe Red List of Endangered Crafts, the HCA

makes the following recommendations.

Government responsibility for heritage crafts: Itis recommended that the Government clarifies therole of the Department for Culture, Media and Sportin supporting heritage crafts and other areas of in-tangible heritage, and makes changes as necessaryto ensure that they are supported through this de-partment and its agencies. Heritage crafts currentlyfall in the gap between the Government agenciesfor arts and heritage, which focus respectively oncontemporary crafts and tangible heritage.

Ratification of the 2003 Convention for the Safe-guarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage: Atthe time of writing, 172 of 194 countries have rati-fied the Convention, butnot the UK. Ratification ofthe Convention would rec-ognise the breadth of thecultural heritage in the UK,and ensure that traditionalcraftsmanship, as well asother forms of intangiblecultural heritage, are safe-guarded for the future.

Action to address the issuesaffecting the viability ofheritage crafts: While thespecific measures neededwill vary according to theindividual craft, action mustbe taken to address thebroader issues affecting thefuture viability of the sec-tor, particularly relating totraining, recruitment, anageing skilled workforce andmarket challenges. Thiswould protect and promote

our craft heritage and help businesses and commu-nities to grow.

Action to downgrade critically endangered crafts:It is recommended that further research is conductedinto the critically endangered crafts to understandfurther the issues affecting them and to identifythe specific requirements of each. Actions mustthen be taken to remove them from the criticallyendangered list. This will require different actionsfor each craft.

Monitoring and review of The Radcliffe Red Listof Endangered Crafts: It is recommended that theRed List is monitored and a thorough review con-ducted every three to five years by repeating theresearch, and that funding be made available todo this.

Recommendations

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Extinct Crafts

Extinct Crafts are those which are no longer prac-tised. The HCA knows of four crafts which have

become extinct in the UK in the last generation.There may be others, and we would like to hearabout them. The reasons for their loss are varied:skilled master craftspeople dying young, the flood-ing of the market with cheap products from abroad,and a lack of demand being some.

These are the crafts that the HCA knowsto have been lost:

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Critically Endangered Crafts

Clay pipe makingClog making (hand-carved soles)Coachbuilding and wagon makingCollar makingDevon stave basket makingFan makingFore-edge paintingHat block makingMetal thread making

Paper marblingParchment and vellum makingPiano makingPlane makingSaw makingSpade making (forged heads)Swill basket makingTanning with oak bark

Critically Endangered Crafts are those at serious risk of no longer being practised. They may include craftswith a shrinking base of craftspeople, crafts with limited training opportunities, crafts with low financial

viability, or crafts where there is no mechanism to pass on the skills and knowledge. There are seventeen craftsthat the HCA considers to be critically endangered.

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ArrowsmithingBell foundingBicycle makingBowl turningBraidingBrass instrument makingBrick makingBroom makingBrush makingChair caningChair seatingClock and watch makingCoopering (beer)Coppersmithing (objects)Cricket bat makingEngine turning (guilloché)Flintknapping (masonry)Folding knife makingGildingGlassworking (scientific glassware)Globe makingHand grindingHarp making

Horn workingHurdle making (gate hurdles)Hurdle making (wattle hurdles)IlluminationJapanningLadder makingLeadworkingLetter cuttingOar, mast, spar and flagpole makingPargetingPassementeriePercussion instrument makingRake makingSail makingScissor makingSlatingSplit cane rod makingSussex trug makingTile making (wall and floor tiles)Wallpaper makingWoodwind instrument making (flutes)Woodwind instrument making (reed instruments)

Endangered Crafts

Endangered Crafts are those which currently have sufficient craftspeople to transmit the craft skills to the nextgeneration, but for which there are serious concerns about their ongoing viability. They may include crafts

with a shrinking market share, an ageing skilled workforce, or crafts with a declining number of practitioners.

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Armour and helmet makingAutomata makingBagpipe makingBasketmakingBlacksmithingBoat buildingBookbindingBow makingBowyeryButton makingCabinet makingCalligraphyCar manufacturingCarpentryCarpet and rug weavingCeramics and potteryChair makingCharcoal burningCob buildingCoopering (spirits)Coppersmithing (stills)Coppice workingCoracle makingCrochetDrum makingDry stone wallingDyeingEdge tool makingEmbroideryFarrieryFelting

Fender makingFletchingFlintknapping (objects)Fly dressingFounding (ferrous metals)Founding (non-ferrous metals)Furniture makingGlass engravingGlassworkingGlove makingGoldsmithingGunmakingHand engravingHandle makingHarris Tweed weavingHedgelayingJewellery makingJoineryKeyboard instrument makingKnife makingKnittingLace makingLeatherworkingMarquetryMedal makingMetal spinningMillineryNet makingOrgan buildingOrkney chair makingPapermaking

Patchwork and quiltingPewter workingPole lathe turningPuppet makingRag ruggingRocking horse makingRope makingSaddleryShoe and boot makingSignwritingSilversmithingSpinningSpoon carvingStained glass and glass paintingStick dressingStone carvingStonemasonryStringed instrument makingTailoringTanningTapestry weavingThatchingTile making (roofing tiles)Timber framingTinsmithingToy makingUpholstery and soft furnishingsWeavingWheelwrightingWood carvingWood turning

Currently Viable Crafts

Currently Viable Crafts are those which are in a healthy state and have sufficient craftspeople to transmitthe craft skills to the next generation. They may include crafts with a large market share, widely popular

crafts, or crafts with a strong local presence. However, these crafts are not risk-free nor without issues aff-ecting their future viability.

Data Deficient: There are eight crafts for which the HCA had insufficient data to make a classification:Carpet and rug tufting, Corn dolly making, Cutlery making (table cutlery), Lorinery, Shoe lastmaking, Straw craft, Swordsmithing, and Tatting.

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Clay pipe makingThe making of tobacco pipes from clay, historically bypress moulding but more recently also by slip casting.

Tobacco was first brought to Europe during the Tudorperiod, and was smoked in a clay pipe. Clay pipe mak-ing in England began in the latter half of the sixteenthcentury, probably in London, and spread across thecountry, especially in areas with access to good whiteclay. Throughout the following 250 years, almostevery city and town, and many villages, had a claypipe maker.

In the second half of the nineteenth century the larger,more prosperous factories took most of the business,and the industry became concentrated in cities andtowns, and the cottage industry died out. London,Bristol, Manchester, Broseley in Shropshire, Stockton-on-Tees, and Glasgow were centres of pipe making.

The twentieth century saw a rise in the popularity of

cigarettes, and then a decline in smoking altogetherdue to the well-publicised health risks. Today, themain market for clay pipes is smoking aficionados,collectors, re-enactments, and film and TV.

Clay pipes are pressed in moulds. The bore is createdby pushing an oiled wire inside the stem, and the bowlis formed by inserting a stopper. The excess clay istrimmed off and the pipe left to dry before the finaltrimming and firing in a kiln. This press method isusually seen as the most traditional, but from themid-nineteenth century the use of slip-casting withliquid clay was also established.

Today there are three craftspeople making clay pipesin the UK: Heather Coleman in Devon, Rex Key inShropshire, and David Higgins. Further information: http://scpr.co/ and http://www.ironbridge.org.uk/ourattractions/broseley-pipeworks/ R

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The making of clogs with hand-carvedwooden soles and leather uppers.

The origins of the British clog are unknown,but they were widespread by the mid-nine-teenth century. Unlike the French sabot orDutch clog, they were never completelywooden; instead they had a leather uppernailed to a hand-carved wooden sole. Thismade them comfortable, hard wearing, andvery durable, and they were often worn inheavy industry. Clogs performed better inwater and heat than conventional leather-soled footwear.

While clogs are still worn today by some fac-tory workers due to their durability andcomfort, the main market is for bespoke andorthopædic clogs. There is also a demandfor clogs worn in clog dancing, althoughthese are more commonly made with machine-cut soles.

Traditional British clogs have a hand-carvedwooden sole which is shaped to fit the indi-vidual; it is made using three pivot knivesapproximately 3-feet long. The leather ishand-cut, shaped and fixed to the soles. Pro-ducing hand-carved soles is the most skilledand most endangered aspect of clog making.

There are currently two skilled clog makersin the UK who hand-carve soles, JeremyAtkinson in Herefordshire and Geraint Parfittin Cardiff, and one apprentice, JoJo Wood.There is also one clog factory and arounda dozen clog makers making clogs withmachine-cut soles.

Further information: https://www.clogmaker.co.uk and www.clogs.co.uk

Clog making

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Coachbuilding and wagon makingThe making of horse-drawn vehicles such as coachesand carriages ('coachbuilding') or wagons ('wagonmaking' or 'wainwrighting').

Four-wheeled, horse-drawn vehicles such as travellingcoaches and baggage wagons were well-known inBritain in mediæval times. The four-wheeled farmwagon, as opposed to the two-wheeled cart, developedin the sixteenth century and each area of the countrysoon came to develop its own regional design. By the1920s the manufacture of new wagons had largelyceased, although many were still in use.

The traditional progression within the craft was fromwheelwright to wainwright to coachbuilder. The workof a wainwright was not as fine as that of a coach-builder, with fewer trimmings and ornamentation.

Today, there is a small market for horse-drawn vehicles.The demand for coaches is mostly for weddings andprivate collections, alongside repairs to existing coaches.The demand for new horse-drawn wagons has all butdisappeared, and the repair market is almost non-existent as the eventual value is typically less than thecost of repair. The small demand for new vehicles islargely met by imports from eastern Europe as theirprice is often only a fraction of the UK cost.

There are two businesses in the UK making coachesand wagons: Crofords Coachbuilders in Kent and MikeRowland & Son in Devon.

Further information: www.wheelwright.org.uk andwww.croford-coachbuilders.co.uk W

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Collar makingThe making of collars for horses, traditionally with aleather outer and rye straw filling.

Historically there were three separate trades – saddlery,collar making and harness making – and these crafts-people could be found in every town and villagethroughout the country. Today collar making, forboth heavy horses and driving collars, and harnessmaking are typically done together. The collar is themost important part of the harness and must be thecorrect size and shape for each horse; the skill lies

in making the best fit.

In the late-nineteenth century there were approxi-mately 3�3 million working horses and collar makingand the other horse-related trades thrived. However,by 1900 the number of horses had fallen to 1 million,and to 20–25,000 by 1914. As the number of horsesdecreased, the demand for the horse-related tradesdisappeared and the crafts fell into rapid decline.

Today, the market for driving collars, mainly forleisure use, is much bigger than that for heavy horse collars, which were previously used in industry. England and mainland Europe provide the princi-pal markets for hand-made collars.

Traditional horse collars consisted of arye straw filling with a leather outer buttoday many collars are made using syn-thetic materials rather than straw, andthe related traditional skills are espe-cially endangered. Much of the presentdemand is met from abroad, especiallythe USA, where production is automatedand the cost is a fraction of that forcollars made in the UK.

There are currently four skilled crafts-people in the UK making collars: JohnMcDonald and Kate Hetherington inSomerset; Terry Davies in Shropshire,and J. C. Huskisson & Son Harness Co. in the West Midlands.

Further information: www.katehetheringtoncollarandharness.co.uk andhttp://traditionalcraftsblog.blogspot.co.uk/2013/09 K

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The making of Devon stave baskets (also known as‘maunds’), an assembled basket made of woodensplints fixed to a wooden base.

The Devon stave is a strong basket made of woodensplints attached to a wooden base. This type ofbasket was traditionally used in the fields, to takefeed to cattle and to collect vegetables and hardfruit after harvesting. It came in five standard sizes,the largest of which is known as a ‘maund’.

The base was traditionally made of elm, but sincethe arrival of Dutch elm disease has been madefrom other woods. The basket is held together bynails and ash bands or bonds. In the smaller sizesan ash band forms the handles; in the larger sizesthe two end staves form the handles. The bandsare cleft from long straight green ash poles, thenshaved to a wedge. This is bent to shape on specialformers and then left to dry. Each size of stave baskethas its own former: one for the top band and onefor the handle in the smaller sizes, and one for thetop band only in the larger sizes.

The last person to make Devon stave baskets in anyquantity, Jack Rowsell, died in 1997. He learned thecraft from his father and made about 25–50 a yearin his spare time.

Today there are no full-time makers of the Devonstave basket in the UK and it could be consideredalmost extinct. However, the Museum of EnglishRural Life at the University of Reading holds detailedinformation on how to make the baskets, and has aset of slides showing the construction process. Thereare two people who know how to make the basketsand teach occasional courses: Hilary Burns inDevon, and Mark Snellgrove in Cornwall.

Further information: http://www.basketryandbeyond.org.uk/maunds-pannier-markets-north-devon/

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The making of fans, traditionally with wooden sticks(montures) and painted paper leaves.

Fans are believed to date from around 3000BC and werefound in both Europe and the Far East. The earliestfans were fixed, rather than folding, and it is believedthat the latter developed in Japan and spread westto China. The first European folding fans were in-spired by those brought back from the Far East andwere reserved for royalty and the nobility.

By the start of the eighteenth century folding fanswere made throughout Europe and also importedfrom the Far East. At this time, the printed fan wasalso developed. In the nineteenth century, brisé –carved or pierced – fans and printed fans dominatedthe cheaper end of the market, while the high-endmarket was dominated by extremely lavish fans. Theearly twentieth-century saw the rise of advertising

fans and feather fans. Today, commemorative fansare still produced for special occasions.

A fan consists of two parts: the montures – sticksand guards – and the leaf – the paper. Early mon-tures were made from luxury materials such asivory, mother of pearl and tortoiseshell, and werehighly decorated, either with ornamental carving orwith silver, gold and precious stones. The leaveswere often painted by skilled artists; this was con-sidered a separate craft.

Today there is one skilled fan maker in the UK,Caroline Allington, one trainee, Victoria Ajoku, andone fan conservator.

Further information: www.thefanmuseum.org.ukand www.fanmakers.com

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The application of an image to the edgesof the pages of a book.

Fore-edge painting is the craft of applyingan image to the edge of a book. The pageblock is fanned and an image is paintedon the stepped surface. If the page edgesare gilded or marbled, the applied imagedisappears when the book is relaxed;when re-fanned, the painting reappears.

Early English fore-edge paintings are be-lieved to date to the fourteenth century,and depicted heraldic designs in gold andother colours. The first known example ofa disappearing fore-edge painting datesfrom 1649. Around 1750, the subjectmatter of fore-edge paintings changedfrom simple decorative or heraldic designsto landscapes, portraits and religiousscenes, usually painted in full colour.Today, fore-edge painting covers a muchwider variety of topics.

The fortunes of fore-edge painting havefluctuated over the centuries. The craftunderwent a renaissance in the secondhalf of the eighteenth century and anotherin the late-twentieth century.

Due to the intrinsic secrecy of fore-edgepainting, it is a craft that has historicallylanguished in obscurity and very fewpeople have even heard of it. Today thereare three fore-edge painters known to theHCA in the UK: Margaret Allport Costa,Clare Brooksbank, and Martin Frost inWest Sussex.

Further information: www.foredgefrost.co.uk

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The making of the blocks, either in woodor metal, on which hats are made.

Hat block making creates the blocks, eitherin wood or metal, on which hats are shapedand stiffened.

Before 1800, blocks were turned on a latheand were round in shape. At this time, hatswere worn on top of wigs and did not needto fit the shape of the wearer’s head. How-ever, as wigs fell out of fashion the shapeof the block became more important andthey began to be carved by hand to a moreoval shape.

Each hat block is created to form a particularstyle and size. Some hats require a block forthe brim and a second block for the crown.Other blocks are divided into sections, comm-only five. This allows the different pieces tobe taken apart and then reassembled invarious ways to create different effects,and allows the block to be removed with-out deforming the hat.

Soft woods are usually used for hat blocksand aluminium is sometimes substitutedfor wood.

Today, the hat market is flooded with cheapimports from China, making it hard for UKhat manufacturers to compete and leadingto a decline in the demand for hat blocks.

There are two businesses currently makinghat blocks in the UK: Boon & Lane Ltd. inBedfordshire, and Guy Morse Brown inWiltshire.

Further information:www.hatblockstore.co.uk and www.hatblocks.co.uk

Hat block making

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The making of metal threads for embroidery.

Metal threads are used for goldwork, an embroiderytechnique which uses a variety of metal threads andnot just those of gold. Goldwork was originally dev-eloped in Asia over 2,000 years ago and spread toEurope. In the Middle Ages, a highly-skilled style ofembroidery known as ‘Opus Anglicanum’ developedin England which used metal threads on rich velvetor linen backgrounds, particularly for church vest-ments and hangings.

Today metal threads are commonly used in historicalcostumes, theatre costumes and for insignia. TheRoyal School of Needlework’s training in goldworkembroidery also provides a big market.

Metal threads are made using round or flattened wire,usually gold, silver or copper, sometimes with a coreof another material. In order to create different tex-tures, metal threads are made in different ways, eachwith variations. These include ‘purl’, where round orflattened wire is formed into a tightly coiled spring,and ‘twist’, where three threads are twisted together.

There are two businesses currently making metalembroidery threads in the UK: Benton & Johnson,and Golden Threads in East Sussex.

Further information:https://www.thetoyeshop.com/benton-johnson.htmland http://www.goldenthreads.co.uk/

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The application of an aqueous surface design on topaper, which can produce patterns similar to smoothmarble or other kinds of stone. In this case, paper mar-bling refers to the making of extremely complex rep-eatable patterns which require very high levels of skill.

The process of paper marbling was first developedin China and Japan, before spreading to Turkey andreaching Europe in the seventeenth century. In Europe,marbled paper was used for book covers and end-papers. The patterned paper ensured that slight dam-age due to constant or rough handling was lessobvious than if the cover had been plain. Each sheetof paper produced by marbling is unique and work-shops developed a number of different patterns.Marbling became popular as a handicraft in thenineteenth century after the publication of the ‘TheArt of Marbling’ by Charles Woolnough in 1853.

The tools and materials used for paper marbling arerelatively simple. A watertight tray is filled with aviscous substance that will hold the ink on the sur-face, such as the gel produced by Irish carrageenmoss. One or more colours of paint are dropped onto the surface and allowed to spread for a randompattern, or combed or twirled to produce more con-trolled patterns. Paper, usually treated with alum, isgently laid on the surface and the pattern on the geltransfers to the paper. The paper is then carefullylifted and washed to remove excess colour.

The HCA knows of two paper marblers practising tothis high level in the UK: Victoria Hall in Norfolk andLucy McGrath in London.

Further information: http://www.marbling.org

Paper marbling

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ing. Photo

: Patr

icia

Lovett

MBE23

The making of material used for writing, drawing,drumskins, book binding etc, from processed animalskin. Vellum refers specifically to calfskin, andparchment is sheep and goatskin.

Parchment and vellum have been used for manuscriptsand books for thousands of years. As a writing sur-face, vellum, when properly prepared, surpasses anypaper and lasts far longer. The Codex Sinaiticus is afourth-century vellum bible, the pages of which arestill flexible and can be turned easily.

The skins are a by-product of the meat and dairyindustry. They are soaked in vats of lime water and

the hair is gently eased out of the skin using a two-handled knife called a scudder. The skins are thenstretched out and scraped to raise the grain and createas even a surface as possible. Once dry, the skinsare cut from the frames and rolled ready for use.

Today there is only one manufacturer of parchmentand vellum in the UK: William Cowley in Buckingham-shire, where there are two masters and one apprentice.

Further information: http://www.williamcowley.co.uk/ and http://www.patricialovett.com/vellum-and-parchment-and-a-special-offer/

Parchment and vellum making

Lee M

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illiam

Cow

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Photo

: Patr

icia

Lovett

MBE

24

The making of pianos.

The piano was invented around 1700 and by the endof the eighteenth century had replaced the harpsichordas the predominant keyboard instrument. Over thenext century the design of the piano changed signif-icantly, with the development of high quality pianowire for the strings, the introduction of an iron frameto support the strings, and new methods of stringing.The design of the piano has remained relatively un-changed since the late 1800s, although manufacturersmay use different materials or techniques within themanufacturing process.

Pianos have been built in Britain for over 200 years.At the start of the twentieth century there were 360

makers, but the last firm ceased UK manufacture in2009. However, the craft was revived in 2012 byCavendish Pianos in North Yorkshire.

Building pianos by hand is a highly-skilled craft whichrequires years of specialised training and includes theskills of cabinet making, string making, piano actionbuilding, and tuning. Each piano is built over severalweeks, and has its own unique personal characteristics.

Today there is only one manufacturer of pianos inthe UK: Cavendish Pianos in North Yorkshire.

Further information: http://www.cavendishpianos.com

Piano making

Pia

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Photo

: w

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25

26

The making of hand planes for wood-working.

The earliest known woodworking planesdate from the Roman era. Until the mid-seventeenth century, planes were madeby the craftsmen who used them, butby the end of the century plane makinghad emerged as a separate craft. Thenumber of plane makers in Britain peakedat about 180 in 1855, following whichthe craft fell into rapid decline due to theintroduction of machinery to performtasks for which planes had previouslybeen used, and to the reorganisation ofthe trade.

Woodworking planes consist of a steelblade held in a body of cast metal orwood. In an infill plane, the body is madeof both metal and wood. There are num-erous designs of planes, each intendedto perform a particular task, and manycrafts and trades have their own veryspecific styles of planes.

Today there are just a few makers ofeach type of plane in the UK: Phil Edwardsin Dorset makes traditional eighteenth-century wooden-bodied woodworkinghand planes, using beech and Sheffieldhigh carbon steel. Oliver Sparks inLeicestershire makes a small number ofexquisite wood and infill planes. ThomasFlinn & Co. in Sheffield are the only manu-facturer of cast iron planes, producingthe Clifton range of planes.

Further information: http://www.philly-planes.co.uk/ andhttp://www.oliversparks.co.uk/ andhttp://www.flinn-garlick-saws.co.uk/

Plane making Polishin

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The making of hand saws for cutting wood and othermaterials, with metal blades and wooden handles.

The earliest known metal saws date from 2500BC

and were used by carpenters and stone masons inthe Middle East. These saws cut on the pull stroke.The Romans began to set the saw teeth – splayingthem slightly so they create a little clearance in thecut – enabling the saws to cut on the more powerfulpush stroke. Improvements in the quality of steel inthe early-seventeenth century dispensed with thecumbersome wooden frames necessary to hold theblade under tension, and saw making in its currentform dates from the production of rolled steel plateduring the Industrial Revolution.

There are various skilled processes involved in sawmaking, including grinding, cutting the teeth, shap-ing and fitting the wooden handle, and sharpeningand setting the teeth. There are numerous designsof saws, each intended to perform a particular task.

Today there are two businesses making saws in theUK: Skelton Saws in North Yorkshire make a verysmall number of high-end saws using predominantlyeighteenth-century production techniques. ThomasFlinn & Co. in Sheffield make saws on a larger scale,and have four skilled makers.

Further information: www.flinn-garlick-saws.co.ukand www.skeltonsaws.co.uk

Saw making

Saw

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as F

linn &

Co.,

Sheff

ield

. Photo

: Robin

Wood M

BE27

28

The making of spades and shovels,specifically with forged heads andusually with wooden handles.

Spades, shovels and forks traditionallyhad forged metal heads attached towooden handles. The very earliestspades were made by blacksmiths asone-offs using an anvil and hammer,but with the Industrial Revolution theforging became more mechanised, yetstill highly skilled, with the use of thepower hammer. The first power hamm-ers were powered by water, and laterreplaced by steam and then electricity.Dies were used under the power hamm-er to increase the speed and consist-ency of production.

Bulldog Tools were the last major manu-facturer forging spade and shovelheads in the UK. However, in 2014they outsourced the forging to India,although they still make the handlesand assemble the tools in the UK.

Today there is only one manufacturerof spades with forged heads in theUK: Patterson's Spade Mill in CountyAntrim, owned by the National Trust.The spade mill has one of only twooperational tilt hammers in the UK,and the heads are forged from a solidbillet of steel.

Further information:https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/pattersons-spade-mill

Spade makingPatt

ers

on's

Spade M

ill. P

hoto

: Robin

Wood M

BE

The making of swill baskets, made fromwoven strips of cleft oak.

Oak swill baskets are very strong, hard-wearing baskets traditional to the southernLake District where they have been madefor centuries. The origins of swill basketsare unclear, but it is likely that they startedas a cottage industry which then expandedafter the Industrial Revolution into its owntrade. There were related swills in Derby-shire and Shropshire but both traditionshave died out. Swills were used on coalsteamships, in mines, mills, ironworks andin many other industries. They also hadfarm and domestic uses, but this declinedrapidly in the post-war years with the rise ofcontainers made from alternative materialssuch as wire and plastic.

While many traditional British baskets weremade from willow rods, a wide variety ofother materials has also been used, includ-ing cleft wood of different species for oakswills, Sussex trugs and Devon stave baskets.For swill making, small oak trees are copp-iced, split into billets and boiled for manyhours. The wood is then riven whilst hot andtorn apart into thin strips that can be woveninto an extremely tight, durable basket.

There are currently two makers of swillbaskets in the UK: Owen Jones MBE, theonly full-time swill maker, and Lorna Singleton, both in Cumbria.

Further information: http://www.oakswills.co.uk O

wen Jones M

BE

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. Photo

: Robin

Wood M

BE

Swill basket making

29

The process of using oak bark tanning to convertraw hide or skin into leather.

The tanning of animal skins and hides to turn theminto leather using tannic acid from vegetable matter,known as vegetable tanning, has been undertaken formillennia. Oak bark was traditionally used becauseof its high tannic acid content. In the mid-nineteenthcentury it was discovered that a chromium solutioncould also be used to tan leather, and chrome tann-ing was subsequently adopted by many tanners.

In oak bark tanning, the bark is stripped from felledoak trees during the spring and summer seasonsand dried out for two or three years, before beingground down and soaked in cold water to draw outthe tannic acid. When the tanning solution is strongenough, hides are suspended in pots of it for threemonths. The hides are then removed and laid flat,

one on top of the other, in deeper pits where theyremain for nine months. When the hides are takenout of the pits, they are dried for two or three days,at which point they are ready for finishing.

A downside of using oak bark for tanning is that it isa slow process, taking up to fourteen months. How-ever, it produces a leather that has a better tensilestrength, a better appearance, and lasts longer thanchrome-tanned leather, although these qualities mightonly show after twenty years' wear. Oak bark tannedleather lies at the high end of the market, and is usedfor shoes, saddlery, luggage and fashion goods.

There is only one oak bark tannery in the UK wheremost of the processes are carried out by hand: J & FJ Baker & Co. Ltd. in Devon.

Further information: http://www.jfjbaker.co.uk/

Tanning with oak bark

Oak t

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Baker

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.Photo

: Jo

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30

From Austria and Afghanistan to Uzbekistan and Zimbabwe,172 countries of the 194 countries in the United Nations

have signed the 2003 UNESCO Convention for the Safeguardingof the Intangible Cultural Heritage.

The UK is one of the 22 countries that have not signed theUNESCO Convention.

Tangible cultural heritage refers to the physical aspects of her-itage, such as monuments, buildings and artefacts. These arewell-cared for in the UK by various organisations.

Intangible cultural heritage refers to the non-physical aspects ofheritage – that which cannot be seen – and includes traditionalcraft skills, knowledge and techniques.

Ratification of the UNESCO Convention would recognise thebreadth of the cultural heritage in the UK, and ensure that tradi-tional craftsmanship, aswell as other forms of in-tangible cultural heri-tage,are better safeguarded forthe future.

The HCA has asked theGovernment why the UKhas not signed the Conven-tion; we have not yet rec-eived a reply.

Further information: http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/en/convention

Intangible Cultural Heritage

31Belo

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, Bla

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Left

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righti

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s: Paul Felix

What can you do?

1. Join the Heritage Crafts Association:www.heritagecrafts.org.uk

2. Make a donation to the HCA so that we can do even more tosupport heritage crafts.

3. Sponsor a craft trainee. To discuss how you could become in-volved, contact: info@heritagecrafts.org.uk

4. Let us know if you are aware of a heritage craft that is notlisted in this publication or if you have further information toadd about any craft. Contact: redlist@heritagecrafts.org.uk

5. Lobby government to ratify the 2003 UNESCO Convention for

the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage.

We sincerely hope that this research will act as a call toaction to those who have it within their power to resolveor alleviate the issues affecting heritage crafts in the UK,and that this project will mark the start of long-termmonitoring of heritage craft viability and a shared will toavoid the cultural loss that is borne each time a craft dies.

For the full report on The Radcliffe Red List of EndangeredCrafts please see: http://redlist.heritagecrafts.org.uk

www.heritagecrafts.org.uk